Priaulx Wins Third Indy Race after Thompson Drive-Through

Sebastian Priaulx benefited from a Parker Thompson drive-through penalty to win Sunday’s third Porsche Carrera Cup North America presented by The Cayman Islands race at Indianapolis and extend his points lead over Kay van Berlo who finished third.

Sunday morning winner Thompson snatched the Race 3 lead from pole-sitter Priaulx on the left-hand switchback through Turn 2 after running side-by-side around Turn 1.

A long Full Course Caution period to clean up fluids spread by Pro-Am leader Efrin Castro’s accident on the front straight at the end of the first lap kept Thompson in the lead for most of the 45-minute contest.

The JDX Racing driver, who had finished second and first in the two prior Indianapolis races, remained ahead after the restart with 15 minutes to go but was carrying a penalty for changing lanes at the start of the race.

Thompson served his drive-through with just under 10 minutes left on the clock, releasing Priaulx into a lead that would be maintained until the checkered flag.

Priaulx came under pressure from Riley Dickinson in the closing stages, with the pair ultimately crossing the finish line three-tenths of a second apart.

It marked a second win of the Indianapolis weekend for Priaulx, who heads to the final triple-header round at Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta with a provisional 44-point advantage over van Berlo.

Van Berlo started Race 3 from the back of the grid due to an engine change after Race 2, which saw the Dutchman’s Porsche 911 GT3 Cup retire with a mechanical problem.

Van Berlo charged from 23rd to 12th on the opening lap and made further progress after the Full Course Caution ended.

He muscled past Leh Keen at Turn 4 to take third late on, reducing the points gain made by Priaulx who banked a maximum 30-point score for starting from pole and winning.

Keen ended up fourth ahead of Dylan Murry, followed by TJ Fischer and Sebastian Carazo while Thompson slipped down to 11th.

Curt Swearingin finished eighth overall and notched up his maiden Pro-Am class win of the campaign driving for ACI Motorsports.

Swearingin started from second behind Castro, who was seeking to claim a sweep of the Indianapolis event until his contact with the left-side wall in the early stages.

Alan Metni, who is also taking part in Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America this weekend at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, took second in Pro-Am and was less than a second behind Swearingin at the end.

Castro’s misfortune enabled Metni to create some breathing room at the top of the standings after his main title rival closed in with clear victories in the first two races.

Tim Pappas took third for JDX Racing, ahead of Wright Motorsports driver John Goetz.

Joseph Lombardo earned his second Pro-Am 991 win of the day, beating Matt Halcome who is set to take a 60-point series lead to the Road Atlanta season finale in November.

RESULTS: Indianapolis Race 3